


Raise a Glass to Us

by Roses_and_Nails



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Homophobia, LATER, Lil Babies, M/M, Modern AU, NSFW, abuse mention, every one is a lil baby for the first few chapters theyre in preschool, lil baby alex, lil baby everyone, lil baby john, quite later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-18
Updated: 2016-03-19
Packaged: 2018-05-21 12:16:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6051292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Roses_and_Nails/pseuds/Roses_and_Nails
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I do." Alex grinned, blinking the tears away so he could see his beloved again clearly. The other, the curly haired, freckled angel that he was standing in front of repeated him, his grin matching his own. "You may now kiss." Alex almost fell over as John kissed him, matching his passion and excitement. They weren't aware of the cheers, and Lafayette's "get a room!" They touched foreheads, tears streaming down both of their cheeks. John whispered those words that Alex has needed since he was four. "Forever." Alex smiled through his tears and whispered back, his heart bursting. "Forever."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! This is definitely gonna take a while to write, and I'll try to update as much as possible but ih ave so many health problems so itll be hard. But I'll do my best!

Alexander giggled as he snuck up behind James with a conch shell full of water. He approached the only slightly older boy and dumped the water onto his head. The four year old squealed in delight and clapped happily, dropping the large shell to run. James, his older brother by two years, chased him. Rachel and James Sr. watched their small children run and play along the white sand beach, and splash in the clear, cyan water of the Caribbean. The two young parents were too young to know what consequences would come of their actions. The children had no idea why they had to be hidden. But they didn’t care, they thought it was a game. Especially Alexander. The young boy was oblivious to life’s troubles, the hardest thing for him was what he wanted for supper and what he wanted to read before nap time.   
The kids were also unaware of time, for it was daylight a little while ago. Now the sun was going down. Alex and James had a joke that the ocean was eating the sun. Each time they talked about it, they were thrown into fits of giggles at the possibilities. Rachel and James would smile at their children's innocence and happiness, hoping they’d never have to face the world’s wrath. But of course, every good thing must end. Even the sun sets in paradise, as the kids learned.   
Young Alex would learn that life isn’t always the way he wants. But that would come later in this story. But for now, they were happy.


	2. First Day, First Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “My name is John!” Alex stood and puffed out his chest, holding out his hand like he saw his Daddy do. “My name is Alexander!” John squealed in delight and stood, taking Alex’s and shaking like he’s seen his Daddy do. Both boys dissolved into a giggle fit, collapsing on the floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter up!

“Alex, c’mon, honey. Mommy has to go to work. James, please come here, I have to take you to school.” Rachel was struggling to round her kids up, and today was Alex’s first day of preschool. It was James’ first day of kindergarten, and Rachel was already beat. Her ginger hair pulled up into a ponytail, a few strands falling out in front of her usually bright, green eyes, which were tired and worn. Alex was hiding behind his mother’s leg shyly, peeking out at the kids who were playing with each other. He didn’t have a lot of kids to play with at home, so he and James always played together. They knew each other's weaknesses and strengths, and Alex didn’t like being away from him. Rachel sighed tiredly and crouched to his level. “Baby, Mommy has to go to work, okay? You’ll make new friends and have lots of fun here! I’ll pick you up in just a little while, okay? I have a special lunch for my big boy!” Alex grinned and giggled, his eyes glittering. He nodded and Rachel hugged him tightly, kissing his forehead and ruffling his hair. “Be a good boy for me, okay? Come here, James.” Said six year old ran to his mother’s side and hugged Alexander tightly. Alex hugged back, not wanting to let go. But he did anyway and waved goodbye to his brother.   
A woman,much taller than he, stood over him. She had long brown hair and glasses, a slim figure, and glasses. She wore a purple sundress that came to her knees, and white flats. Her hair was pulled up into a bun with her bangs falling out. She smiled down at Alex and crouched to speak to him properly, wearing a million dollar smile. “Hello Alex! I’m Miss Martha.” Her voice was sweet, and it made him want to curl up and take a nap, he thought. He tried out the name. “Hello, Miss Martha! My Mommy is a cook!” Miss Martha smiled. “Is she? Do you know where she works?” Alex nodded. “Yep! She works at McDonald's!” Miss Martha laughed softly. “I’m sure you get a lot of chicken nuggets, huh?” Alex nodded happily and giggled behind his hands.   
Miss Martha ruffled his hair and stood, taking his hand. “Would you like to meet some kids?” Alex thought for a moment before nodding. Miss Martha led him to a rocking chair. “Children, come sit at the story time rug! We have a new student!” About ten kids came over and sat on the brightly colored rug, and Alex didn’t know where to focus. He tried to look at the other kids, but he didn’t know who to look at, and he felt uncomfortable with all the stares. He tried to look at the rug, but triangles and squares could only amuse him for so long. He finally settled on Miss Martha and the flowers on her cardigan. He traced the beaded flowers with his eyes before he heard his name being called.  
“Kids, this is Alexander! He came all the way from an island called the Caribbean. He’s four years old. Alex, tell us something about you.” Alex looked up at the class and thought for a minute before grinning. “I can speak French!” Apparently, Miss Martha wasn’t counting on that answer because she blinked, looking a bit confused. “What can you say in French?” Alex beamed. “I can count to ten! Une, duex, troi, cuatre, cinque, six, sept, huit, neuf, nerf dix!” He stood proudly, very happy with himself. Miss Martha grinned. “Good job, Alex!” The class clapped and Alex puffed up his chest. Miss Martha laughed and stood. “Be nice to him, class.” She got up and stood on the back wall, watching the kids play.   
Alexander was left alone, standing near the rocking chair still. He looked around for a minute before walking over to the blocks. He plopped down, starting to make a house out of the blocks. They were small, and they fit nicely in his small hands. Once he finished, he grinned at his work and started to build a house next to it. His happiness was short lived, however, as a light-up shoe flew next to his face and down tumbled his blocks. He stood and balled his tiny fists, stomping. He came face to face with a boy taller than him with puffy brown hair and dark skin. Alex almost screamed. “Why did you do that!” He worked very hard on that house. The other boy laughed, both at his anger and his slight Scottish accent. He crossed his arms proudly. “It was stupid.” Alex stomped again and huffed. The other kid, grinning, walked away.  
Alex plopped down again and sniffled, already wanting to go home. He started building his house again, tears welling up in his clear blue eyes. A few hot tears rolled down his faintly freckled cheeks and he wiped them away angrily. He felt a tap on his shoulder, surprising him. He looked up quickly, bending his back to look at the kid upside down. He readjusted and turned to face him. The boy had curly hair falling to his shoulders. His skin was just a little lighter than his, with freckles much darker, and all over his face. He was wearing a Spiderman shirt and jeans with light-up Spiderman shoes. He gasped and looked at his shoes. “I’ve always wanted light up shoes!” The boy giggled and sat next to him. “My Daddy got them for me. I like your shirt. I love Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!” Alex looked down at his old, worn shirt and smiled. “My Mommy got this for my brother James. It was his.” He went back to building his house, whining when it fell. He crossed his arms and pouted, tears welling up in his eyes. “Here! I can help!” The kid with the Spiderman shirt grinned and started building the house just like the other one. Alex watched him and sniffled, wiping the tears from his eyes. The boy finished the house and grinned at Alex, who giggled behind his hands. “My name is John!” Alex stood and puffed out his chest, holding out his hand like he saw his Daddy do. “My name is Alexander!” John squealed in delight and stood, taking Alex’s and shaking like he’s seen his Daddy do. Both boys dissolved into a giggle fit, collapsing on the floor. They continued to play with the blocks for a little while.  
“Snack time!” Miss Martha had set out two cookies for everyone at the small, brightly colored tables. The two boys grinned and stood, running over to the table. They found two seats beside each other and started nibbling on their cookies. Alex gasped. “This is better than what my Daddy makes!” Three girls in front of him giggled. Alex looked up at them in confusion. One had curly brown hair that was pulled up into a ponytail, and she was wearing a yellow dress. The girl in the middle had dark skin and even curlier hair, and she was wearing an orange dress. The last girl had long black hair, half of it pulled up. She was wearing a blue dress. She covered her mouth and giggled while the other two ate their cookies and milk. Alex looked at John curiously, who answered. “Those are the Schuyler sisters. Peggy’s the one in the yellow dress, Angelica is the one in the orange dress, and Eliza is the one in the blue dress. Eliza and Peggy are adopted. That’s why they don’t look alike.” Alex tilted his head and looked back at them, shrugging. The only thing he cared about right now was his cookie.  
After he finished his cookie, it was nap time. Miss Martha had laid out small cots for each kid, fuzzy blankets, and fluffy pillows. The kids crawled into their cots and Miss Martha turned on some soft piano music. Alex laid down in the cot next to John and grinned. “I love this one! Mommy taught me this one!” John giggled and curled up in his cot and clutched the stuffed turtled he pulled from his backpack. Alex didn’t have anything to hold. John noticed, and gave him his turtle. “His name is Lee. You can sleep with him.” Alex smiled and held the turtle close, falling asleep with it clutched to his chest.

“Goodbye children! I’ll see you all tomorrow!” Miss martha bid farewell to all the children as their parents picked them up. Rachel pulled up with James, smiling. She got out and walked to Alex, who was playing with some pebbles on the round. He looked up and squealed. “Mommy!” He hugged her tightly and she chuckled, crouching. “Ready to go home? I have your big boy lunch ready!” Alex nodded. “What is it?” Rachel grinned at him. “Pepperpot with apple juice!” Alex gasped and squealed, jumping up and down excitedly. John giggled behind his hands. “Bye Alex! I’ll see you tomorrow!” Alex grinned and hugged John tightly, who hugged back. They let go and Rachel held Alex’s hand, leading him to the small, grey car. She buckled him into his car seat, checked up on James in his booster seat, and smiled. She got in and drove home, looking at Alex through the rearview mirror. “How was your day at school, honey?” Alex grinned. “It was awesome! I built a house out of blocks but this mean kid knocked it down. I started crying at a boy named John helped me build it again! We ate milk and cookies for snack and John let me sleep with his stuffed turtle at nap time! His name is Lee.”   
Rachel grinned. “That’s great! James, how was your day?” James told her all about his class, and how he learned to write sentences, and how he made new friends.  
When they got home, Rachel unloaded the kids and brought their stuff inside, putting their bookbags on their beds. She got them both situated at the dining table, giving them their Pepperpot. Alex grinned and ate the assorted mixture of potatoes, okra, and peppers quickly. Once he and James were full, Rachel kissed their heads. Since James didn’t get a nap, Rachel took him to bed and read the two a book. James and Rachel fell asleep, but Alex couldn’t. He crawled out of the bed as quietly as he could, tip-toeing into the living room. He sat in the floor and played with his blocks, watching Mickey Mouse happily until Mommy and James got up. He liked John. He decided that John was going to be his friend.


	3. Happy Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John noticed his shivering and got out of his cot, dragging it closer to Alex’s with his small hands. He pushed them together and crawled back in, smiling sleepily at him. “We can share Lee,” John whispered, holding out the stuffed turtle. Alex grinned and moved a little closer, taking the turtle. John giggled and curled up again and both boys pulled the blankets over their heads.

“Nap time children!” At Miss Martha’s call, the kids got up from their toys and to their cots. Thomas and another little boy, with dark, coffee skin and fairly short, curly hair laid in their cots next to each other. One boy with skin a little lighter than the boy with Thomas, and no hair, laid in a cot by himself. The Schuyler Sisters slept next to each other. A boy with mocha skin and very curly, fluffy hair that was pulled up into a ponytail, more like a puff, slept in Martha’s lap. A boy with skin similar to the boy next to Thomas slept in his cot beside John. John settled down in his own cot, right beside Alex. Alex curled in on himself, shivering a little. It was cold outside, in mid November. He had arrived at the end of October, and he was slowly getting adjusted. John helped him a lot.

John noticed his shivering and got out of his cot, dragging it closer to Alex’s with his small hands. He pushed them together and crawled back in, smiling sleepily at him. “We can share Lee,” John whispered, holding out the stuffed turtle. Alex grinned and moved a little closer, taking the turtle. John giggled and curled up again and both boys pulled the blankets over their heads. It took thirty-five minutes for them to finally fall asleep. Alex became sprawled out, one leg uncovered by the blanket. John was curled up as tight as his tiny body would let him, burying his face in his hands. Miss Martha walked around to check on everyone, gently passing the small boy she was holding to her husband, George, who was helping out for the day. All the kids loved him. He was tall, and could be intimidating, but they made a game out of pushing his buttons. He was very tall, and had a strong build. He had caramel skin and no hair but strong eyebrows that made all the kids giggle. The small child in his arms shifted and buried his face into George’s neck, making the man smile. 

Something that Miss Martha had come to learn is that Alex was a hard sleeper. When they tried to wake up the small boy, he’d whine, and a few times, would start crying. In these times, only John could soothe him. It was a mystery as to why only John could dry his tears. But Miss Martha would understand within time  
.  
In mid-December, Alex was trying to be woken up from nap time. He didn’t want to wake up, even more than usual. He was sobbing and he didn’t want to be touched. John hugged him and tried to soothe him, but it almost didn’t work. Miss Martha led John and Alex out into the hallway.

“Alex, honey, what’s wrong? You never want to wake up from nap time anymore.” Alex answered through his tears, sniffling and heaving stuttering breaths. “M-mommy and Daddy a-are fighting all the time n-now. I think they’re f-fighting over their toys b-but they’re yelling a l-lot.” Alex sniffled again and John hugged him tightly, not liking seeing his best friend crying. Miss Martha gasped softly and crouched hugging both boys and petting their hair. “Oh sweetie, I’m sorry. When Mommy comes to pick you up, I’ll ask her why they’re fighting, okay? How does that sound?” She pulled back and pet his hair, Alex nodding and wiping his eyes. Miss Martha stood and led the boys back into the classroom. The two went off in their corner and started playing with their blocks.

“Mommy said that Daddy might have to live somewhere else for a while,” Alex said as he built a small house. John tilted his head curiously, his curls bouncing around his chubby cheeks.”Why would she say that?” Alex shrugged. “Maybe they don’t wanna talk because he took her toy?” John shrugged. “Maybe.” The conversation ended there and they continued to play with the blocks before moving onto the kitchen set. Alex gasped as he got an idea. “John! John! Let’s play house! You be the Mommy and I’ll be the Daddy!” John giggled happily but questioned him. “But we’re both boys. How can I be the Mommy?” Alex started looking for the glass of “milk” on the floor. “I dunno. Some of my friends back home had two Daddies or two Mommies. You can be the Mommy and I’ll be the Daddy!” John shrugged and squealed in delight. “Okay! But who’s gonna be our baby?” alex thought for a minute before gasping. “The French kid? Do you know his name?” John nodded. “Gilbert!” Alex clapped his hands together. “Perfect!”

The two boys ran over to the boy in Martha’s arms, grinning. “Can Gilbert play with us,” John asked, making Gil looked up. He looked down at the two curiously, looking at Miss Martha. She smiled and put him down. Gilbert looked up at her and smiled softly before walking to the kitchen set with John and Alex. He stood there in confusion while the other two boys played and chatted. Alex saw that Gilbert was lost, and started speaking French to him. “John is the Mommy and I’m the Daddy! You can be our baby!” The taller boy tilted his head, responding in kind. “But I don’t wanna be the baby.” Alex huffed. “But who else is gonna be the baby?” Gil heaved a deep sigh. “Fine.” Alex grinned, and John took that as a win, grinning in kind. 

“Mommy! I’m home!” Alex walked up to John, who was “feeding” Gilbert some “peas.” John grinned and giggled, wiping GIlbert’s face with a plastic napkin. Alex hugged John and paused. “What do Mommies and Daddies do when they see each other?” John tilted his head and though. “Hmmmm…..do they kiss?” Alex shrugged. “Maybe.” John went back to “feeding” Gilbert. Alex walked up to John and pecked his cheek, making John gasp. He covered his face and Alex laughed hugged John. “I love you, Mommy!” John hugged back. “I love you, Daddy!” Gilbert giggled behind his hand and started speaking, very softly. “Bonjur, Papa!” Alex grinned and hugged Gilbert. “Bonjur, Gilbert!” Alex put down his “briefcase,” which was a toy teaset case. He sat beside the kitchen set and Gilbert sat in his lap. Alex grinned, petting his hair like he saw Miss Martha do. John gave the two a plate of “food,” and Alex started pretend-eating it. After he was done, he grinned and giggled. “This is fun!” 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Goodbye kids!” Miss Martha led the children out and held Gilbert’s hand. John and Alex held hands and played together like kids do, doing nothing at all but doing something in their minds. John’s dad came up to them, seemingly from nowhere. John looked up at him and smiled standing with Alex. The two boys hugged tightly, to the point where John’s dad had to pull John away. John pouted and waved to Alex as Henry picked him up and took him to his car. Alex sighed sitting on the ground again. After a few minutes, Rachel came and smiled, crouching. Alex stood and grinned, hugging her tightly. “Mommy!” Rachel laughed softly. “Hello, sweetie!” She took his hand and bid goodbye to Miss Martha, leading Alex to the car and buckling him into his car seat. 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

When they got home, Alex ran inside and hugged James. They ran to their room and started playing while Rachel fixed their lunch. After a few minutes, Alex heard the yelling again. His smile faded and he stopped playing. James asked him what was wrong but Alex didn't answer. He crawled into his bed curling up and facing the wall. He sat up and grabbed his backpack, digging through it. He gasped. He had accidentally taken home Lee, John’s stuffed turtle. He felt hot tears well up in his eyes and he grabbed it, laying back down and clutching it to his chest until his knuckles went white. He sniffled and James cleaned up the toys, crawling in beside him. “Mommy and Daddy won’t fight forever.” Alex whined softly and James faced away from him so that their backs were together. In that moment, Alex found peace. Holding John’s turtle, feeling his brother’s presence behind him; it soothed him. He covered his ears with the covers to try and block out the yelling. Eventually, James fell asleep. Alex didn’t sleep very well that night or at naptime, so he was still tired. He finally fell asleep, his tiny hands holding onto the stuffed turtle as if it was his lifeline. And right now, it was.


	4. The Schuyler Sisters + 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She stood and started putting little, messy braids in his hair. She didn’t have anything to tie them off with, but it was fine. She had a few in the front, and one big one in the back. Luckily, she had one holding her hair in a pony tail. She pulled it out and tied it at the end of John’s hair. By the time she was done, the braids in the front had fallen out, but that was fine by her. She clapped happily. “There! You look beautiful!” She giggled. “My Momma says that to us all the time.” John tilted his head, his grin never fading. He stood up when peggy sat down, starting to play with her hair in return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god im finally back. Im so sorry it took so long for this one. My health got bad again, and im trying to get through it. I've been dissociating for days so this is rushed and kinda everywhere. Forgive me for it being so short

“You’re all alone,” came the small, concerned voice of John. Alex was sitting at a table alone, coloring as best he could. He was coloring in a picture of a cat. He looked up, looking tired. “I’m okay.” He was tired. Mommy and Daddy were fighting still, and he didn’t to bother James in the middle of the night. He was a good little brother like that. He sighed and focused back on his cat, working extra hard on the eyes. He didn’t want to get out of the lines too much. He grinned when he partially succeeded, holding out the picture for John to see.

John giggled and hugged Alex from the side, both of their cheeks squished together. This made Alex giggle back, just as excited. He hugged back and then pulled away. John sat next to him, picking up a picture of a horse. He picked up the brown crayon when Alex stopped him. “Color it purple!” John tilted his head. “Horses aren’t purple.” Alex nodded. “They can be!” John pondered this for a short moment before agreeing, a wide grin on his chubby, freckled face. He picked up the purple crayon instead and started coloring as carefully as he could. He went out of the lines, but he was very proud of his work. He put the crayon down once he deemed the horse efficiently purple. The curly-haired boy turned his back to Alex, who tried to look over his shoulder, and folded the drawing. He did his very best to write “To Alex.” The ‘e’ was backwards and the ‘T’ was almost too small, but for him, it was perfect. He turned back around and, as if suddenly shy, thrusted the folded paper into Alex’s hands. Alex took it and opened it, an even bigger grin spreading over his features. He wrapped his arms around John in a tight hug, who hugged back immediately.

The two pulled apart and went to the corner, where they usually played, only to be met with three girls; the Schuyler Sisters. They were playing with the blocks that they usually played with. Alex wanted to tell them to leave, but John had other ideas. He sat right down in front of them, and Alex slowly took his lead. The three girls watched them, sitting very close together. The girl in yellow, Peggy, hid behind Angelica. The girl in the blue dress, Eliza, smiled at Alex but kept her space. Angelica, the sister in pink and long, curly hair, puffed up almost proudly. “What do you want?” It was more pointed at Alex, but he didn’t notice. He was going to be best friends with Eliza, he decided. “We wanna play with you!” Peggy giggled softly at John’s proclamation, and John giggled along. 

Alex moved a little closer to Eliza, who was on the left of Angelica. He started helping her build a tower, giggling at everything she said. Angelica seemed to stare Alex down, but he didn’t care. John smiled almost shyly at Peggy and moved closer to her as well. She was hidden so that only her caramel brown eyes were peeking over Angelica’s shoulder. John held his hand out and she, even shier than him, took it. She crawled out from behind her older sister and sat close to John, absolutely fascinated by his hair. It was dark, chocolate brown and very curly, obviously not been cut in a while It was just past his chin, and the perfect length for Peggy to play with. Her hands dove into John’s hair, eyes wide and mouth slightly ajar in wonder at how a boy’s hair could be so soft. She stood and started putting little, messy braids in his hair. She didn’t have anything to tie them off with, but it was fine. She had a few in the front, and one big one in the back. Luckily, she had one holding her hair in a pony tail. She pulled it out and tied it at the end of John’s hair. By the time she was done, the braids in the front had fallen out, but that was fine by her. She clapped happily. “There! You look beautiful!” She giggled. “My Momma says that to us all the time.” John tilted his head, his grin never fading. He stood up when peggy sat down, starting to play with her hair in return.

Eliza was sneaking glances at Alex as he build. His tongue was poking out of the side of his mouth in rapt concentration. This tower was very important. Eliza thought that Alex would be a good friend. When he was done, Alex stepped back. “Ta-da!” He threw his arms up and Eliza giggled, squealing in delight. “It’s beautiful!” The ginger boy puffed out his chest in pride. 

Angelica pouted when she realized that she was being ignored. She didn’t like being ignored. She huffed and moved closer to Eliza, taking her hand in hers. “Eliza, wanna go play with the doll house?” Eliza nodded, letting Angelica lead her. The girl in the pink shot a nasty glare to Alex over her shoulder. Alex shrank back, tilting his head. 

John finally pulled back, giving Peggy a matching braid. It was messy, but he was happy with it. He pouted when he realized he didn’t have a hair tie, looking around. “Hold this.” He put the braid in her hands and ran all around the classroom, finally coming back with a piece of string. He took the braid back and tied it together with a long piece of yellow string. She stood and hugged him tightly, then pulling back and giggling behind her hands shyly. She turned when she heard Angelica calling her name, her expression sad now. She waved goodbye to John, still very giggly. Airy, even. No, not airy. Flustered? It didn’t matter to John. He didn’t even know those words. Daddy had said them before, but he didn’t know what they meant. 

“Snack time!” Miss Martha was holding Gilbert in her arms, on her plump hip. He had his face buried in her shoulder as if hiding from the light. A glass of milk and two cookies were set out at every seat, along with a book on one of the tables. She put Gilbert down, who sat in the chair closest to Miss Martha. John and Alex exchanged excited looks as they ran to the seats beside the French boy. Thomas proudly strode up to one of the tables, Aaron walking behind him silently. James trailed behind them both, smiling shyly to no one in particular. He gave a little whisper of a cough as he sat down beside Thomas, laying his head on his friend’s shoulder. He sniffled and picked up his cookie, nibbling it. He didn’t feel good, and wasn’t very hungry. Thomas ate a half of his cookie almost immediately, and Aaron ate his slowly, savoring it. Hercules sat beside John and Alex boldly, grinning. He practically inhaled his first cookie. He noticed Alex, John, and the Schuyler Sisters stare at him, and he gave an embarrassed smile. 

Alex started wolfing down his cookie, but thought first. He broke his first cookie in half, giving it to John. The freckled boy grinned and ate it happily. Alex was really hungry, but he didn’t mind. John was his friend. He wanted to share everything with him. That’s what best friends did, right? 

Hercules leaned in close, tilting his head. He pulled back when Angelica glared. He shook it off rather quickly, however, and looked at the other three boys. “I’m Hercules!” Alex grinned. “I’m Alex!” John introduced himself a little calmer, and Gilbert just smiled. They made casual conversation the rest of nap. Well, as casual of conversation as four year olds can have. After snack, Miss Martha tucked every kid in for snack. John and Alex pushed their cots together, cuddling as close as they could to each other. It was a particularly cold day in December. They were both cold, so the body heat was very appreciated. Miss Martha had given up on trying to separate them. Alex and John continued to whisper for a good ten minutes. 

“Wanna come over tomorrow?” Alex’s eyes were eager and pleading, John’s hesitant but hopeful. “I’ll ask Daddy.” Alex scrunched up his nose as he smiled, a trait he’s always had. His smile was crooked and almost reckless. John’s was calm and straight, which almost didn’t fit him. But only Alex was able to look past the calm smile to see equal recklessness. That was the smile that fit him. The two finally fell asleep, Alex’s cheek squished against the pillow. John had his face buried in his stuffed turtle. For the first time in a month, Alex was happy again. He didn’t cry around John. He wasn’t sad. He was happy. Alex went home smiling for the first time in a while. He responded with distracted comments to his mother’s questions, making her and James a bit worried. But Alex was perfectly fine. As long as John was his friend, he would be okay.


End file.
